A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains or may contain material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the photocopy reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure in exactly the form it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
The present invention relates in general to a gaming device, and more particularly to a gaming device which has a bonus scheme which involves applying one or more input values to one or more selections and receiving one or more output values in return.
Many existing gaming machines, such as traditional slot machines, include bonus rounds. Typically, a bonus round begins when the player reaches a bonus triggering event in the primary game of the gaming device. In slot machines with reels, the triggering event usually occurs when the player reaches a predetermined combination of symbols on the reels. The bonus scheme generally provides the player with an opportunity to gain a bonus value before the bonus round terminates.
Some bonus schemes enable a player to choose from a plurality of selections. Each selection is associated with a value. Depending upon which choice a player makes, the player will receive a relatively high, low or no value at all.
To increase player enjoyment and excitement, it is desirable to provide players with new bonus schemes for gaming devices which enable players to apply certain input values to desired selections, resulting in output values.
The present invention provides a gaming device which includes a plurality of selections and one or more input values. An input value, at times referred to herein as a xe2x80x9cstarting valuexe2x80x9d includes any input or starting bonus value which a player can relate to or apply to a selection or symbol. When a player is described herein in terms of xe2x80x9crelatingxe2x80x9d a value to a location, this includes the player associating a value with a location. One or more, and preferably all, of the selections are associated with a modifier. A selection, which is preferably a symbol, can be a representation of any person, place or thing. The term modifier, as used herein, includes one or more numerical multiplication factors, addition factors or subtraction factors (including zero, the number one and all other numbers in fractional, whole or decimal form) and any game, award opportunity or event. When a modifier is applied to an input value, the result is an output value. An output value, at times referred to herein as an xe2x80x9cending value,xe2x80x9d is the mathematical result of a modifier being applied to an input value. In other words, the gaming device processor uses the numerical modifier to mathematically change the starting value or starting bonus value to an ending value or ending bonus value. For example, the gaming device may provide the player with an input value or starting value of ten. If the modifier of this input value or starting value is an addition factor of five, the output value or ending value would be fifteen. Generally, in operation the player applies one or more input values or starting values to one or more selections or symbols. The numerical modifiers associated with certain selections or symbols determine the output values or ending values for each selection or symbol. As an award, the player receives the total output value or ending value, which is the sum of the output values or ending values for each selection or symbol.
In one embodiment, the gaming device displays the selections to the player while masking or not revealing the associated modifiers. The gaming device enables the player to apply various input values to the selections on a one-by-one basis. Here, it is preferable that the player can only choose one selection one time for any one input value. When the player applies an input value to a particular selection, the gaming device reveals the modifier associated with that selection. Preferably, the gaming device also reveals the output value associated with that selection. When the player completes applying all of the input values, the gaming device awards the player with the sum of the output values for all of the selections.
In an alternative embodiment, the gaming device enables the player to apply more than one input value to a single selection. When a player does so, the gaming device preferably displays on the selection itself a current listing of the input values applied to that particular selection. In this embodiment, the gaming device does not display the modifiers associated with the selections until the player has applied all of the input values to the selections.
In another embodiment, the gaming device provides the player with one input value and a plurality of selections and associated modifiers. The gaming device enables the player to apply incremental portions of the input value to desired selections. The player continues to make selections until the input value is depleted. For example, the gaming device may provide the player with a starting bonus amount of one hundred and enable the player to apply this one hundred value or amount in increments or portions of ten. The player thus applies or relates starting bonus amount portions to symbols on multiple occasions. After the player completes applying the entire starting bonus amount, the gaming device preferably displays the ending bonus amount portions associated with each symbol. The gaming device can display the total ending bonus amount instead of or in addition to the separate ending bonus amount portions.
In one embodiment, the bonus scheme of the present invention is used to imitate the workings of financial investment, risk and return. The gaming device displays the input values as bills and the selections as investment opportunities such as real estate. The total output value mimics the player""s return on investments.
The bonus scheme of the present invention thus enables the player to apply one or more input bonus values to a plurality of selections. Each selection is associated with a modifier, such as a multiplication factor of two or one-half. Depending upon which selections the player makes, the player can obtain a relatively high or relatively low total bonus output. This type of bonus scheme provides players with increased entertainment and enjoyment.
It is therefore an advantage of the present invention to provide a gaming device having a bonus scheme with an input-output value bonus scheme.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed disclosure, taken in conjunction with the accompanying sheets of drawings, wherein like numerals refer to like parts, elements, components, steps and processes.